Omaha daily bee., 1887-02-21
A DRESSED BEEF WAR.
A Struggle For Monopoly of the
New York OIty Trade.


New York. Feb. 20.--1he Mail and Ex-
press yesterday said: "A big fl hit is at hand
and the prize is the meat supply of New
York City. Three opposing armies have
been struggling and planning during the
past year against each other. Each possesses
ammunition to the amount of over 500, Co.,
900. Slight skrmshes have been fought
during the last few months. followed by a
lull. During the week just passed, however,
a scheme has been unearthed which for bold
ness and enterprise is unparalleled in the
history of the cleaver. The National Con-
sumers' Meat company is its author and has
succeeded in surprising its foes, the Chicago
dressed beefmen and clty slaughterers. This
is the scheme. The sale of Chicago dressed
beef and city slaughtered carcasses is about
even in New York. Last March the National
Consumers Meat company opened five retail
stores in this city. 1t shipped dressed car
casses direct from the Montana range coun-
try and thus became the rival n OF only of the
city slaughterers and Chicago dressed heet
men, but also of the retail butchers With
its forces concentrated and its capital multi
piled it will make q vigorous and diplomatic
attack upon the city slaughterers and Chicago
men thus: 1t proposes to win the retail
butchers to its side by purchasing every shop
in New York for cash, by making the pro-
prietor stockhoder inithe company and re-
tanning him as the manager of the business
transferred, The company, of course, viii
supply all these stores with its own meat, and
owning every retail establishment in the
city, there will be no outlet for any other
stock. This means the total abolition of
city slaughtering and of all shipments of
The movement, it will thus be seen, is very
bold one. The Marquis lie Mores, who is the
general of the Consumers forces" is very
confident of success. though reluctant at pres
ent to disclose the details of the scheme in
question "Our plan," he said yesterday,
"is not to sell at Wholesale to retail butchers,
as seems to be the general Impression. We
desire to bring our stock direct to the con-
sumer our company is to be merged into
another very large cattle syndicate, and hav-
ing abundant capital we propose to buy up
every retail butcher store in this city, either
for cash or stock If our negotiations are not
successful, why, we Gag open 800 or 400 inde-
pendent retail shops. We desire first to give
every retail butcher a chance to dispose
of his business. The city .slaughterers
cannot compete with us" a., Y. Foster,
of Kansas City, thes conpany's western
manager, who was present during the inter-
view, said that any possible opposition from
Chicago dressed beef was not considered at
present interviews with the leading whole
sale butchers are given. They are generally
of the opinion that the plan will not work.
They say it will take about S20,000,000 to
begin with to buy out all the retail stores :;
that this, however VIII not give the COM
pany the trade, as its meat is not equal IN
ton shops will spring up all around those of
the syndicate. Managers here of Chicago
dressed beef houses did not think much of
the scheme.